IKEA has been recognized by the Ethisphere Institute as one of the Worlds Most Ethical (WME) companies for 2010, and will appear in Ethisphere Magazine's Q1 issue. Ethisphere is a think-tank dedicated to the creation, advancement and sharing of best practices in business ethics, corporate social responsibility, anti-corruption and sustainability. Ethisphere conducted in-depth research and a multi-step analysis of thousands of nominations from companies in over 100 countries and 36 industries in order to determine the winners. A sampling of other winners include Aflac, American Express, Campbell Soup, the Ford Motor Company, General Electric, Google, L'Oreal, Nike, PepsiCo, Starbucks, T-Mobile USA, UPS, Whole Foods Market and Xerox. "We believe the strength of a company starts with a deep commitment - not only from management - but also from every co-worker who has demonstrated unwavering dedication to the highest standards," said Mike Ward, IKEA U.S. President. "IKEA's promotion of a sound ethical environment shines within its industry and shows a clear understanding that operating under the highest standards for business behavior goes beyond goodwill and "lip-service" and is intimately linked to performance and profitability," said Alex Brigham, Executive Director of the Ethisphere Institute. "This year's World's Most Ethical Companies award was more competitive than ever, because companies realize that making ethics a priority is critical amidst a tough economic environment." Brigham added, "Compliance or ethics failures add up to more than fees, fines and penalties. The leadership distraction and turnover, forced alteration of a working profit model and heightened scrutiny that result show: good ethics means better business." The methodology for the WME ranking includes reviewing codes of ethics, litigation and regulatory infraction histories; evaluating the investment in innovation and sustainable business practices; looking at activities designed to improve corporate citizenship; and studying nominations from senior executives, industry peers, suppliers and customers. Read about the methodology and view the complete list of the 2010 World's Most Ethical Companies at http://ethisphere.com/wme-2010.